Propeller.



FYNIS C. GORDON, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO,

.ASSIGrNOR` TO GORDON PROPELLER COM- PANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

PROPELLER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FYNIS C. GORDON, a I citizen `of the United States, and a resident of Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga, in the State of Ohio, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Propellers, of Which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a propeller in which the blades are reversible so that the shaft, while turning continuously in one direction may be made to turn the vessel ahead or astern as desired.

The invention herein described is an improvement over a similar device disclosed in my prior patent No. 819,540, dated May l, 1906, and the invention resides in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts which render the present device more efficient in certain particulars than that of the patent above referred to.

An object `of the present invention is to provide an improved casing for the propeller blades, the said casing constituting not only a protective and retaining part but-a bearing part as well.

A further object of my invention is to provide means by which the reversible propeller blades may be assembled within the casing ready for shipment and can be' installed in their assembled positions, thereby doing away with the necessity of disturbing the assembled parts after they have been properly assembled in the factory.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specication and the novel features of the device will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which similar reference characters indicate like parts in the several views, and in which- Figure 1 is a plan view showing one embodiment of my invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view partly in section of the propeller blades and their' inclosing casing. Fig. 3 is a section taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section taken along the line 1 4 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view at right angles to Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing the collars and their integral lugs, and Fig. 7 is a view similar to that of Fig. 3 showing a three-blade propeller.

Referring now to Figs. f1 and 5, I have Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 17, 1908.

shown therein the main propeller shaft 1,

Patented Jan. 4, 1910. Serial No. 458,184.

f which extends from the engine, not shown,

to the head 2, the latter being fastened securely thereby by means of a key or in any other suitable manner. Disposed on the shaft is a sleeve 3 provided with a threaded end portion 4L arranged to engage a threaded opening inthe cylindrical portion 5 of a gear 6. The latter is arranged to enter a cut-away portion in the head 2 as clearly shown in Fig. et. Disposed in similar cutaway portions ofthe head 2 are the inner ends 7 of the propeller blades S and 8. These portions consist of concavo convex flanges and are provided with teeth 7 on the outercircumference arranged to mesh with the teeth 6 on the Oear 6, as shown in Fig. 2. Each of the bla( es 8 and S' has an inwardly projecting central spindle 8*1 arranged to enter openings in the head 2 to permit the rotation of the gears. In order to hold the propeller blades in their proper position I provide a casing 9 consisting of upper and lower parts 9a and 9", one of said parts 9" being shown in F ig. 2 and both of the parts 9L and 9b being shown in section in Fig. 4. These parts are so arranged that they may be put around the assembled blades to form a casing for the inner ends thereof and also for the gear G, which cooperates therewith. The casing 9 :is pro-j vided with suitable openings to permit the propeller blades and the cylindrical portion of the gear 6 to project therethrough and has the threaded end portions 9c and 9, adapted to receive the retaining nuts 10 and 11, as shown in Figs. 4, 1 and 5. The nuts are locked in position by means of the set screws 10 and 1l.

It will be seen from the above construction that when the shaft l is revolved, the head 2 being fast thereto, will carry the blades around, but that when the sleeve 3 is turned upon the shaft l as an axis, the blades 8 and 8 will be rotated around their central axes by the engagement of the teeth of the gear 6 with the teeth of the ends 7 of the blades, thereby turning the blades at varying inclinations to permit the driving of the vessel forward or backward as desired.

Referring now again to Fig. 5, it will be seen that the sleeve 3 is threaded on the end opposite the propeller and is arranged to receive an internally, threaded collar 12, which may be screwed upon the sleeve until the latter comes in contact with the annular flange 13 projecting inwardly from said collar. In order to secure the collar to the sleeve a key 14 is provided. rIYhe collar 12 is provided with integral lugs 12a and 12b for a purpose hereinafter explained. Coperating with the collar 12 is a collar 15 which is keyed to the shaft 1, and which is also provided with integral lugs 15a and 15", as shown in Fig. 6. The collar 15 fits snugly up against the end of the collar 12. The space between the annular flange 13 and the end of the collar 15 being vutilized as a packing gland or stufing box. The outer sleeve 16 is disposed around the sleeve 3 and is provided with two spiral grooves or slots 16a and 16", and the longitudinal slots 16c and 16d, as shown in Fig. 1. The lugs 12a and 12b of the collar 12 are arranged to enter the slots`16a and 16" respectively, while the lugs 15a and 15" enter the slots16C and 16d. The ends of the sleeve 16 are screw threaded on their inner sides to receive the end caps 17 and 18 respectively. Each of these end'caps is provided with a groove 19 for the reception of the'set screws 20, to keep the caps in their places. The cap 17 is provided with an annular groove 21 arranged to receive a two-part collar 22, which may be fastened together around the cap and the parts of whichare adapted to enter the groove 21, as clearly shown in Fig. 5. The collar 22 is provided with laterally extending projections 23 which are arranged to be engaged by the pivoted links 24 attached to the reversing lever 25. The latter member is pivoted at 26 and has attached thereto a spring-actuated locking member 27, arranged to engage the rack 28 for locking the lever in its adjusted position.

j! From the above description of the various parts the operation thereof can be' readily understood. Vith the shaft 1 turning in a constant direction it will be seen that the propeller blades, which are carried by` the head 2, will also be turned and if these blades are set in the proper position, the vessel will be driven forward. Now if it is desired to stop the vessel or to back it, the lever 25 is shifted, thereby forcing the sleeve 16 along the shaft longitudinally thereof. The lugs or cam members 12a and 12b will be engaged by the sleeve 16 and therefore, since the collar 15 is 'keyed to the shaft 1, will cause a rotation lof the sleeve 3 with respect to the shaft 1. This will cause a tilting of the propeller blades asv already stated. Thesey blades may be set so as to drive the vessel forward or drive it backward or to maintain a neutral-positionsuch as shown in Figs. 1 and 5, and they may beladjusted at varying inclinations between these positions. i

It will thus be: seen that I have providedV a casing for the ends of the propeller blades which in itself formst part of the bearing for these ends, so that'the' blades may be turned' to the proper angle. Now if the collar 12 should become loose from `the sleeve 3 t-he casing would not fall apart but would still remain intact, holding` the ends of the propeller blades securely in place. Moreover, with the above described construction, the blades can be assembled in their properV position or attached to the shaft and canV be set up without the necessity of dismantling these parts.

I desire to call particular attention to' the means for oiling the operating mechanism. This consists of ahole which is filled through the collar 12 and the end f the sleeve 3 as shown at 29,*and which-has a screwBO, see Fig. 1, seated therein. This screw may be removed and the mechanism oiled without taking these devices apart.

I claim- 1. In a reversingpropeller, the combination with a main shaft, a spherical head secured thereto and provided with recesses, a gear disposed in one of said recesses and the ends of propeller blades disposed in other of said recesses said ends being provided 'with teeth arranged to mesh with teeth on said gear, and a two-part casing provided with openings to permit a portion of'said gear and said blade ends to project therethrough, said casing having threaded extensions arranged to receive retain-ing nuts.

2. In a reversing-propeller, the combination of a main shaft provided with an integral head having recesses, propeller blades having their ends journaled inthe recesses in said head, a gear in one of said recesses, teeth on the journaled ends of the propeller blades arranged to mesh with said gear and a casing arranged to inclose the journaled end of said propeller blade and said gear end adapted to form exterior auxiliary bearings for said blade ends and for said gear.

8. In a reversing propeller, a main shaft provided with an integral head, a sleeve mounted on said shaft and movable with respect thereto, a gear att-ached to said sleeve, propeller blades journaled in said head and arranged to be turned around their central axes by said gear, an inclosing casing'arranged to form exterior bearings for said gear and for the inner ends of said propeller blades, a collar secured to the opposite end of said sleeve and provided with integral lugs, a second collar secured to said vmain shaft and provided with integral lugs, an external sleeve provided with slots arranged tor receive the lugs of both of said collars, and means for moving the external sleeve to reverse the propeller.

FYNIS C. GORDON.

Witnesses SoLoN C. KEMoN,

y L. A.' STANLEY.

ioo 

